Method and apparatus for optimizing optical recording

ABSTRACT

Aspects of the disclosure can provide a method to optimize optical recording. The method can include recording a pre-defined pattern on an optical medium according to a first write strategy, measuring edge timings corresponding to the pre-defined pattern recorded on the optical medium, determining a second write strategy including at least timing modifications to the first write strategy, and recording data on the optical medium according to the second write strategy. The timing modifications can be determined based on the measured edge timings, edge timing targets for desired edge timings and edge timing sensitivities to the timing modifications.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.61/024,330, “Optimizing Write Performance by Control of Phase Edges”filed on Jan. 29, 2008, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND

An optical recording system can use laser pulses to record data, forexample in the form of marks and spaces, on an optical storage medium.The recording quality, which may determine reading compatibility byother optical reading/recording systems, can be affected by propertiesof both the optical recording system and the optical storage medium. Inorder to improve the recording quality, an optical recording system mayperform a calibration procedure, such as an optimum power calibration(OPC) procedure, to obtain appropriate parameter values of laser pulsescorresponding to a specific optical storage medium, before an actualrecording of user data. Then, the optical recording system can use thelaser pulses with the appropriate parameter values to perform the userdata recording on the specific optical storage medium.

SUMMARY

Aspects of the disclosure can provide a method to optimize opticalrecording. The method can include recording a pre-defined pattern on anoptical medium according to a first write strategy, measuring edgetimings corresponding to the pre-defined pattern recorded on the opticalmedium, determining a second write strategy including at least timingmodifications to the first write strategy, and recording data on theoptical medium according to the second write strategy. The timingmodifications can be determined based on the measured edge timings, edgetiming targets for desired edge timings and edge timing sensitivities tothe timing modifications.

Additionally, the method can include determining a power modificationbased on an average of the measured edge timings. Then, the second writestrategy can include both the power modification and the timingmodifications to the first write strategy.

To determine the timing modifications, the method can include obtainingan inverse of an edge timing sensitivity matrix. Each element in theedge timing sensitivity matrix can indicate a timing change of an edgein a first matrix dimension with regard to a unit change of a transitionin a second matrix dimension.

Further, to obtain the inverse of the edge timing sensitivity, themethod can include reading the edge timing sensitivity matrix fromfirmware, and calculating the inverse edge timing sensitivity matrix.Alternatively, the firmware may include the inverse edge timingsensitivity, thus the method can include reading the inverse edge timingsensitivity matrix from the firmware.

Further, the method can include determining the first write strategybased on address in pre-groove (ADIP) information. In addition, themethod can include obtaining the edge timing targets and the edge timingsensitivities from firmware.

According to an aspect of the disclosure, the pre-defined pattern caninclude an optical power and timing calibration pattern. The pre-definedpattern can be recorded in an optical power calibration section of theoptical medium.

Aspects of the disclosure can provide an optical drive. The opticaldrive can include a recording unit configured to drive a laser unit torecord patterns on an optical medium according to a write strategy, areading unit configured to generate reading signals corresponding torecorded patterns on the optical medium, and a controller. Thecontroller can be configured to provide the recording unit with a firstwrite strategy for the recording unit to one-time record a pre-definedpattern on the optical medium. Further, the controller can measure edgetimings corresponding to the recorded pre-defined pattern from signalsgenerated by the reading unit. Then, the controller can determine asecond write strategy including at least timing modifications to thefirst write strategy, and provide the second write strategy to therecording unit. According to the disclosure, the timing modificationscan be determined based on the measured edge timings, edge timingtargets and edge timing sensitivities to the timing modifications.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various exemplary embodiments of this disclosure will be described indetail with reference to the following figures, wherein like numeralsreference like elements, and wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an exemplary medium system;

FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of an exemplary controller for an opticaldrive;

FIG. 3 shows a flowchart outlining an exemplary calibration process;

FIGS. 4A-4E show exemplary tables and plots for obtaining an edge timingdistribution;

FIGS. 5A-5E show exemplary matrices, equations and plots for acalibration process; and

FIG. 6 shows an exemplary sensitivity matrix according to an embodimentof the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an exemplary medium system according tothe disclosure. The medium system 100 can include an optical drive 150and other components, such as a processor 110, a random access memory(RAM) module 115, a non-volatile memory module 120, an audio/videomodule 125, a user input module 130, a network module 135, and awireless communication module 140. These components can be coupledtogether as shown in FIG. 1.

The optical drive 150 can further include an optical pickup unit (OPU)160, and a controller 170. The OPU 160 can record data to a memorymedium, such as an optical disc 190, and can read the recorded data fromthe optical disc 190. The optical disc 190 may store data on a recordingtrack in the form of marks and spaces.

The OPU 160 can further include a laser unit 165. The laser unit 165 canbe controlled to record data on the optical disc 190 in a recordingprocess and can be used to read the recorded data from the optical disc190 in a reading process. During the recording process, the laser unit165 can be controlled to emit high power laser pulses according to awrite strategy and data to be recorded. The write strategy may includewrite strategy parameters for the laser pulses, such as laser pulsepower, pulse length, pulse phase, pulse interval, switch speed, and thelike. The data to be recorded may be encoded according to one or morecoding schemes. According to the write strategy and the data to berecorded, the laser pulses can be directed to the recording track of theoptical disc 190, and may selectively change an optical property, suchas reflectivity, of the recording track, such that the recording trackcan be in the form of marks and spaces.

During the reading process, the laser unit 165 can be controlled to emita low energy laser beam. The laser beam can be directed onto therecording track of the optical disc 190. The laser beam can be reflectedby the recording track. The reflected laser beam may have a lightintensity corresponding to the optical property of the recoding track.Further, the light intensity can be detected by a detector (not shown)of the OPU 160. The detector may generate an electrical signal, such asa voltage signal, corresponding to the light intensity. The electricalsignal may have a property, such as an amplitude of the voltage signal,corresponding to the optical property at the recording track, which canbe used to differentiate the marks or the spaces on the recording track.

It is noted that various coding schemes may use transitions betweenmarks and spaces to encode data instead of directly using marks andspaces to represent binary states in order to improve recordingperformance. For example, a non-return-to-zero inverted (NRZI) codingscheme may use transitions, including transitions from marks to spaces,or transitions from spaces to marks, to encode “1”, and useno-transitions to encode “0”. The transition based coding schemes canreduce DC noise influence, and thus improve recording performance.

The transitions between marks and spaces may result in edges, such asvoltage increase edges and voltage decrease edges, in the electricalsignal generated by the detector of the OPU 160. The edges can becompared to a system clock to obtain edge timings. The edge timings canbe used to decode the encoded data. In the NRZI example, timings of twoadjacent edges may determine a number of zeros between two ones. Thus,timings for the laser pulses to record the transitions between marks andspaces can have an effect on the recording performance.

According to the disclosure, the controller 170 can enable a one-timewrite strategy timing optimization process to determine an optimum writestrategy for the optical drive 150 to record data on the specificoptical disc 190. The one-time write strategy timing optimizationprocess can record a pre-defined pattern for one time on the opticaldisc 190 before an official recording, and determine the optimum writestrategy based on the one-time recording. More specifically, thecontroller 170 can may determine an initial write strategy, and controlthe laser unit 165 to record the pre-defined pattern for one time on theoptical disc 190 according to the initial write strategy. In anembodiment, the initial write strategy may be determined based onaddress in pre-groove (ADIP) information on the optical disc 190. Thepre-defined pattern may include transitions under various contexts, suchas various lengths of marks and spaces. Further, the controller 170 cancontrol the OPU 160 to read the recorded pattern from the optical disc190. The controller 170 may receive electrical signals with edgescorresponding to the transitions between spaces and marks. Thecontroller 170 may measure edge timings and edge timing distributionsfor the various contexts with regard to a system clock.

Additionally, the controller 170 may include edge timing targets, whichcan be in the form of a target matrix, and edge timing sensitivities,which can be in the form of a sensitivity matrix. The edge timingtargets may correspond to edge timings that are known of high recordingperformance. The edge timing sensitivities may correspond to edge timingchanges with regard to changes in the write strategy, such as laserpulse timing changes. The edge timing targets and the edge timingsensitivities may be pre-determined, and can be stored in firmware thatcan be available to the controller 170, such as in the non-volatilememory 120. Then, based on the edge timing distributions, the edgetiming targets and the edge timing sensitivities, the controller 170 maydetermine the changes of the recording laser pulses that cansubstantially achieve the edge timing targets. The above operations mayonly need to be executed for one time to obtain the optimum writestrategy, such that time for calibration can be reduced.

In an embodiment, the edge timing sensitivities may be in the form ofedge timing changes with regard to transition location shifts. Thecontroller 170 may first determine the transition location shifts toachieve the edge timing targets, and then determine laser pulseparameters of a specific type of write strategy to achieve thetransition location shifts. In another embodiment, the edge timingsensitivity may be in the form of edge timing changes with regard tolaser pulse timings of a specific type of write strategy. Then, thecontroller 170 may directly determine optimum laser pulse parameters ofthe specific type of write strategy.

It is noted that the optical drive 150 may include various othercomponents that can assist the recording operation and the readingoperation. For example, the OPU 160 may include a set of lens forguiding the laser beam, and photodiodes for detecting the reflectedlight from the recording track.

It is also noted that the optical drive 150 may operate with the othercomponents of the medium system 100 for various applications. Forexample, the processor 110 can execute instructions, and perform dataoperations. The processor 110 may provide data to the optical drive 150for storing on the optical disc 190.

The non-volatile memory module 120 can hold information even when poweris off. Therefore, the non-volatile memory 120 can be used to storesystem and application codes, such as firmware. The RAM module 115 isreadable and writable. Generally, the RAM module 115 can have a fastaccess speed. It can be preferred that data and codes are stored in theRAM module 115 during operation, such that the processor 110 can accessthe RAM module 115 for the codes and the data instead of thenon-volatile memory 120.

The user input module 130 may enable the user to control operations ofthe medium system 100. The user input module 130 may include varioususer input devices, such as keyboard, mouse, touch screen, and the like.In addition, the user input module 130 may include interfaces that canenable external user input devices.

The audio/video module 125 may include various audio and video devices,such as microphone, display screen, and the like. In addition, theaudio/video module 125 may include interfaces that can enable externalaudio and video devices. The audio/video module 125 can be utilized toplay audio data/video data that can be stored in the optical disc 190.

The network module 135 and the wireless communication module 140 mayenable the medium system 100 to receive data from other system. Thereceived data can be recorded on the optical disc 190.

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary controller module 270 according to anembodiment of disclosure. The controller 270 may include a writestrategy module 271, a pattern module 272, a laser control unit 273, aread channel module 274, a target module 275, a sensitivity module 276,and a one-time write strategy timing optimization module 277. Theseelements can be coupled together as shown in FIG. 2.

The write strategy module 271 may include various types of writestrategies for laser pulses, such as block strategy, castle strategy,and the like. Each type of write strategy may include adjustable writestrategy parameters. The write strategy module 271 may provide a writestrategy, such as a type of write strategy with write strategy parametervalues, to the laser control unit 273 to record data. For example, thewrite strategy module 271 may provide an initial write strategy, such asa type of write strategy with default parameter values, to the lasercontrol unit 273 at a beginning of a write strategy timing optimizationprocess. In an embodiment, the initial write strategy may be determinedbased on ADIP information of a specific optical disc. Additionally, thewrite strategy module 271 may provide an optimum write strategy based oninformation from the one-time write strategy timing optimization module277.

The write strategy module 271 may include write strategy parameterregisters for holding write strategy parameters. The write strategymodule 271 may adjust the write strategy parameters based on theinformation from the one-time write strategy timing optimization module277. In an embodiment, the write strategy module 270 may include a tablefor a write strategy. The table may include entries corresponding tovarious recording contexts, such as transitions between various lengthsof marks and spaces. Each entry may define laser pulse parameters forrecording one or more transition contexts.

The pattern module 272 may provide recording patterns to the lasercontrol unit 273. For example, the pattern module 272 may provide apre-defined pattern to the laser control unit 273 for the write strategytiming optimization process. In an embodiment, the pre-defined patternmay include a number of occurrences for each transition context.Additionally, the pattern module 272 may convert data into a recordingpattern, and provide the recording pattern to the laser control unit 273for recording.

The laser control unit 273 can control a laser source based on the writestrategy and the recording pattern. Thus, the recording pattern can berecorded on the specific optical disc according to the write strategy.

The read channel module 274 can receive signals corresponding topatterns on the optical disc from an OPU. For example, the read channelmodule 274 can receive a voltage signal corresponding to the recordedpre-defined pattern on the optical disc in the write strategy timingoptimization process. Further, the read channel module 274 can detectedges, such as voltage increase edges and voltage decrease edges in thevoltage signal. The edges can correspond to transitions in the recordedpattern on the optical disc. Then, the read channel module 274 canmeasure edge timings with regard to a clock signal, such as a systemclock signal. Additionally, the read channel module 274 may analyze theedge timing distributions, and provide the edge timing distributions tothe one-time write strategy timing optimization module 277. In anembodiment, the read channel module 274 may calculate means andvariances for the edge timing distributions, and provide the means andvariances to the one-time write strategy timing optimization module 277.In another embodiment, the read channel module 274 may provide the edgetimings to the one-time write strategy timing optimization module 277,and the one-time write strategy timing optimization module 277 mayinclude a calculation unit to calculate the means and variances.

The one-time write strategy timing optimization module 277 can receiveedge timing distributions from the read channel module 274. In addition,the one-time write strategy timing optimization module 277 can receiveedge timing targets from the target module 275, and edge timingsensitivities from the sensitivity module 276. The edge timing targetsmay correspond to desired edge timings. The edge timing sensitivitiesmay represent changes of edge timings with regard to changes in thetransition locations. In an embodiment, the edge timing targets can bein the form of a target matrix, and the edge timing sensitivities can bein the form of one or more sensitivity matrices. Further, the one-timewrite strategy timing optimization module 277 can determine transitionadjustments based on the edge timing distributions, the edge timingtarget and the edge timing sensitivities. In an embodiment, the one-timewrite strategy timing optimization module 277 may use matrix calculationto calculate the transition adjustments. The transition adjustments canbe provided to the write strategy module 271 to adjust the writestrategy accordingly.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the write strategy module271 may adjust the write strategy registers that define the laser pulseparameters for recording the transitions, such that the adjustments ofthe laser pulses can result in the desired adjustments in the recordedtransitions between marks and spaces.

It is noted that the elements of the controller 270 may be implementedin the form of software that can be executed by a processor, such as theprocessor 110. Alternatively, the elements of the controller 270 may beimplemented in the form of hardware, such as application specificintegrated circuits (ASICs), and the like. Further, the elements of thecontroller 270 may be implemented in the form of a combination ofsoftware and hardware.

FIG. 3 shows a flowchart outlining an exemplary one-time write strategytiming optimization process. The process starts at step S310 andproceeds to step S315.

In step S315, an optical disc can be inserted in an optical drive. Then,the process proceeds to step S320.

In step S320, the optical drive can be calibrated with regard to theoptical disc. For example, the focus parameters of the optical drive maybe calibrated with regard to the optical disc. Then, the processproceeds to step S325.

In step S325, the optical drive may load a write strategy, for exampleinto registers. The optical drive may include write strategies forvarious types of optical discs. The optical drive may obtain discinformation, such as manufacture, model, and the like, and load thewrite strategy based on the disc information. Then, the process proceedsto step S330.

In step S330, the optical drive may record a pre-determined patternaccording to multiple powers. The optical drive can record multipletracks of the predetermine pattern corresponding to the multiple powers,respectively. The pre-defined pattern may include a number ofoccurrences for each possible transition context. According to thedisclosure, an optimum write strategy can be determined based on therecorded pre-determined patterns. It is noted that the optimum writestrategy can be determined exclusively on the recorded pre-determinedpatterns in the step S330, even though the optical drive may performadditional test recordings. In an embodiment, the optical drive may onlyperform test recording once, which can record the pre-determinedpattern, and determine the optimum write strategy based on the one-timerecording, thus time for write strategy calibration can be reduced.Then, the process proceeds to step S335.

In step S335, the optical drive may select a track that is close to atarget power from the multiple recorded tracks. More specifically, theoptical drive may read the multiple tracks, and select a track, whichcorresponds to a power of the multiple powers, based on a qualitymeasure, such as modulation depth, and the like. Then, the processproceeds to step S340.

In step S340, the optical drive can determine an optimum power based onan edge timing target. The optical drive may receive an electricalsignal corresponding to the selected track. The electrical signal mayinclude voltage rising and falling edges corresponding to thetransitions between spaces and marks in the selected track. The opticaldrive may measure edge timings with regard to, for example a systemclock, and may analyze the edge timing distributions. Further, theoptical drive may determine a laser pulse power adjustment according tothe measured edge timings. In an embodiment, the laser pulse poweradjustment can be determined based on an edge timing target. Forexample, the laser power adjustment may be used to achieve the averageof the measured edge timing to be zero. Then, the process proceeds tostep S345.

In step S345, the optical drive may determine transition adjustmentsbased on the edge timing distributions, edge timing targets and edgetiming sensitivities. In an embodiment, the optical drive may storepre-determined edge timing targets, and pre-calibrated edge timingsensitivities in the matrix form in a memory unit. Further, the opticaldrive may use matrix calculation to determine the transitionadjustments. In another embodiment, the optical drive may store aninverse matrix of the pre-calibrated edge timing sensitivities, and maydetermine the transition adjustment partially based on the inversematrix. Then, the process proceeds to step S350.

In step S350, the optical drive may calculate laser pulse timing shiftscorresponding to the transition adjustments. Then, the process proceedsto step S355.

In step S355, the optical drive can update the write strategy registersaccording to the laser pulse timing shifts. Then, the process proceedsto step S360.

In step S360, the optical drive may record user data according to theupdated write strategy registers. It is noted that the parameters storedin the write strategy registers are based exclusively on one recordingstep S330, thus the optical drive may be configured not havingadditional test recording steps other than the step S330, therefore timeto obtain the optimum write strategy can be reduced. Then, the processproceeds to step S370 and terminates.

FIGS. 4A-4E show exemplary tables and plots for obtaining edge timingdistribution according to an embodiment of the disclosure. FIG. 4A showsa summary table for transitions from spaces to marks according to anexemplary pre-defined pattern. The summary table may include field 401in column direction for lengths of preceding space, and field 402 in rowdirection for lengths of mark. Generally, the lengths of the spaces andmarks may be represented in terms of clock cycles. Each element in thetable can indicate a number of occurrences of a specific transitioncontext in the pre-defined pattern. The transition context may have apreceding space of a length indicated by field 401, and a mark of alength indicated by field 402. For example, element 403 can indicate 60occurrences of a transition from a space having a length correspondingto 4 clock cycles (S4) to a mark having a length corresponding to 3clock cycles (M3).

FIG. 4B shows a summary table of transitions from marks to spacesaccording to an exemplary pre-defined pattern. The summary table mayinclude field 405 in column direction for lengths of following space,and field 406 in row direction for length of mark. Each element in thetable can indicate a number of occurrences of a specific transitioncontext in the pre-defined pattern. The specific transition context mayhave a mark of a length indicated by field 406, and a following space ofa length indicated by field 405. For example, element 407 can indicate60 occurrences of a transition from a mark having a length correspondingto 3 clock cycles (M3) to a space having a length corresponding to 5clock cycles (S5).

FIG. 4C shows a portion of an exemplary read channel signal with regardto a clock signal according to an embodiment of the disclosure. The readchannel signal may have high voltage portions corresponding to spaces ona recording track, and low voltage portions corresponding to marks onthe recording track. For example, high voltage portions 410, 430, and450 may correspond to spaces S3, S4 and S5 respectively, and low voltageportions 420 and 440 may correspond to marks M5 and M3 respectively. Theread channel signal may have rising and falling edges corresponding totransitions between spaces and marks. In the example, a rising edge maycorrespond to a transition from mark to space, which may be representedby MxSy, such as M5S4 and M3S5, and a falling edge may correspond to atransition from space to mark, which may be represented as SyMx, such asS3M5 and S4M3.

FIG. 4D shows a portion of an exemplary recording track 470 and anexemplary reading laser spot 480. According to the disclosure, thereading laser spot 480 can be reflected by the recording track 470. Thereflected laser can have an intensity related to patterns on therecording track 470. In the example of FIG. 4D, the reading laser spot480 are substantially centered at S4M3. Thus, the intensity of thereflected laser may be related to the S4M3. However, the size of thereading laser spot 480 may be comparable with the lengths of marks andspaces on the recording track 470. Thus, other transitions, such as M5S4and M3S5 in FIG. 4D, can also affect the intensity of the reflectedlaser from S4M3. Accordingly, if the laser pulse timings for M5S4 orM3S5 are changed, the detected edge timing of the S4M3 can change.

The edge timings may be measured with regard to the clock signal. Forexample, the edge timing corresponding to transition S4M3 may bemeasured by timing difference indicated as 460 in FIG. 4C. Further, theedge timings corresponding to transitions may be statistically analyzed.FIG. 4E shows an exemplary edge timing distribution plot for thetransition S4M3. Additionally, statistical parameters, such as means andvariances, may be calculated for the transitions.

FIGS. 5A-5E show exemplary matrices, plots and matrix calculations todetermine transition adjustments according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. FIG. 5A shows an exemplary sensitivity matrix S. Thesensitivity matrix S may include a first dimension (in horizontaldirection) of transitions in the context of spaces and marks, and asecond dimension (in vertical direction) for edges of the read channelsignal corresponding to the transitions. In the example of FIG. 5A, thefirst dimension may include transitions S3M3, S3M4, S3M5 and S3M6; andthe second dimension may include edges of the read channel signalcorresponding to the transitions S3M3, S3M4, S3M5 and S3M6.

An element in the sensitivity matrix may correspond to a transition inthe first dimension and an edge in the second dimension. The transitionin the first dimension can be a cause that may result in a consequenceof changes of the edge in the second dimension. The element may indicatea value of the consequence with regard to a unit change in the cause.The unit change may device or design dependent. For example, for onedevice, a unit change in the transition may correspond to

$\frac{3}{128}$of a clock cycle, and for another device, a unit change in thetransition may correspond to

$\frac{1}{40}$of a clock cycle.

In the example of FIG. 5A, element 510 can correspond to a transitionS3M5 and an edge S3M3. The value 2.2 of element 510 can indicate 2.2changes of the edge S3M3, as a result of a unit change of the transitionS3M5. It is noted that the changes of the edges may be measured in timedomain, and may be measured in a domain other than the time domain.

FIG. 5E shows exemplary plots of a track portion and a read channelsignal corresponding to the track portion for the above example. Thetrack portion can include transitions S3M3, M3S3, and S3M5. When thetransition S3M5 changes one unit, as shown by 520 and 525, the readchannel signal corresponding to the transition S3M3 may be affected, asshown by 530 and 535. According to 510, the read channel signalcorresponding to the transition S3M3 can shift about 2.2. It is notedthat the shift 2.2 is a statistical value, which may be an average valueof a number of occurrences.

FIG. 5B shows an exemplary edge timing matrix P for measured edge timingdistributions. The edge timing matrix P may include a column of meansfor the measured edge timing distributions. FIG. 5C shows an exemplaryedge timing target matrix T for desired edge timings.

FIG. 5D shows an exemplary matrix operation that can be used todetermine transition adjustments based on the sensitivity matrix S inFIG. 5A, the edge timing matrix P in FIG. 5B and the edge timing targetmatrix T in FIG. 5C.

In an embodiment, an optical drive may store an edge timing targetmatrix T and a sensitivity matrix S in a memory unit, such as in theform of firmware. Then, the optical drive may perform the one timerecording step S320, and measure the edge timing distribution to obtainthe edge timing matrix P. Further, the optical drive can perform thematrix operation in FIG. 5D to determine the transition adjustments.

It is noted that the matrix operation includes calculating an inversesensitivity matrix S⁻¹, which can generally take a large portion ofcomputing time and computing power, due to the reason that thesensitivity matrix may be large. In an embodiment, an optical drive maystore an edge timing target matrix T and an inverse sensitivity matrixS⁻¹ that is pre-calculated in a memory unit. Thus, when the opticaldrive performs the matrix operation in FIG. 5D, the inverse sensitivitymatrix S⁻¹ can be read from the memory unit, to avoid repetitive inversematrix calculation at real-time, thus the time and the computing powerto calculate the inverse sensitivity matrix S⁻¹ can be saved.

It is noted that while the matrix based example in FIGS. 5A-5D includesfour transitions for the purpose of ease and clarity, the matrix basedmethod can be suitably extended to determine transition adjustments forany number of transitions. It is also noted that the matrix operationmay be performed by a processor executing an algorithm.

FIG. 6 shows another exemplary edge timing sensitivity matrix. The edgetiming sensitive matrix 600 can include a first dimension 610 and asecond dimension 620. The first dimension 610 may include independentlyadjustable transitions for an eight-to-fourteen (EFM) code scheme.According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the EFM code scheme mayinclude 50 transition contexts. However, an optical drive may beconfigured to be able to adjust 32 of the transitions independently. Forexample, the optical drive may include 32 entries for a write strategy,and each entry may store write strategy parameters for recording one ormore transitions. The second dimension 620 may include edgescorresponding to the transitions in the first dimension. Each element inthe edge timing sensitivity matrix 600 may correspond to a transition inthe first dimension and an edge in the second dimension. The value ofthe element may indicate timing changes of the edge as a result of laserpulse changes for a unit change of the transition.

In an embodiment, the edge timing sensitivity matrix may bepre-calibrated, and stored, for example in firmware. It is noted thatthe edge timing sensitivity matrix may be updated when a more accurateversion is available. In another embodiment, an inverse of the edgetiming sensitivity matrix 600 may be pre-calculated and stored to savereal-time calculation time.

While the invention has been described in conjunction with the specificexemplary embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives,modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in theart. Accordingly, exemplary embodiments of the invention as set forthherein are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. There are changesthat may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

1. A method to optimize optical recording, comprising: recording apre-defined pattern on an optical medium according to a first writestrategy; measuring edge timings corresponding to the pre-definedpattern recorded on the optical medium; determining a second writestrategy including at least timing modifications to the first writestrategy, the timing modifications being based on the measured edgetimings, edge timing targets for desired edge timings and edge timingsensitivities to the timing modifications; recording user data on theoptical medium according to the second write strategy; and determining apower modification based on an average of the measured edge timings,wherein the second write strategy includes the power modification to thefirst write strategy.
 2. The method according to claim 1, whereindetermining the second write strategy including the timing modificationsto the first write strategy further comprises: obtaining an inverse edgetiming sensitivity matrix that is an inverse of an edge timingsensitivity matrix, each element in the edge timing sensitivity matrixindicating a timing change of an edge in a first matrix dimension withregard to a unit change of a transition in a second matrix dimension. 3.The method according to claim 2, wherein obtaining the inverse edgetiming sensitivity further comprises: reading the edge timingsensitivity matrix from firmware; and calculating the inverse edgetiming sensitivity matrix.
 4. The method according to claim 2, whereinobtaining the inverse edge timing sensitivity further comprises: readingthe inverse edge timing sensitivity matrix from firmware.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising: determining the first writestrategy based on address in pre-groove (ADIP) information.
 6. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the pre-defined pattern is recordedin an optical power calibration section of the optical medium.
 7. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the recording strategy includes atleast one of a block strategy, a castle strategy, and a pulse strategy.8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second write strategyonly depends on the recording of the pre-defined pattern according tothe first write strategy.
 9. An optical drive, comprising: a recordingunit configured to drive a laser unit to record patterns on an opticalmedium according to a write strategy; a reading unit configured togenerate reading signals corresponding to recorded patterns on theoptical medium; and a controller configured to provide the recordingunit with a first write strategy for the recording unit to record apre-defined pattern on the optical medium, measure edge timingscorresponding to the recorded pre-defined pattern from signals generatedby the reading unit, determine a second write strategy including atleast timing modifications to the first write strategy, and provide thesecond write strategy to the recording unit for recording user data,wherein the timing modifications are based on the measured edge timings,edge timing targets and edge timing sensitivities to the timingmodifications, the controller further configured to determine a powermodification based on an average of the measured edge timings, and thesecond write strategy includes the power modification to the first writestrategy.
 10. The optical drive according to claim 9, wherein thecontroller is further configured to obtain an inverse edge timingsensitivity matrix that is an inverse of an edge timing sensitivitymatrix, and each element in the edge timing sensitivity matrix indicatesa timing change of an edge in a first matrix dimension with regard to aunit change of a transition in a second matrix dimension.
 11. Theoptical drive according to claim 10, further comprising: a memory unitstoring the edge timing sensitivity matrix, wherein the controller isfurther configured to calculate the inverse edge timing sensitivitymatrix.
 12. The optical drive according to claim 10, further comprising:a memory unit storing the inverse edge timing sensitivity matrix. 13.The optical drive according to claim 9, wherein the first write strategyis determined based on address in pre-groove (ADIP) information.
 14. Theoptical drive according to claim 9, wherein the pre-defined pattern isrecorded in an optical power calibration section of the optical medium.15. The optical drive according to claim 9, wherein the write strategyincludes at least one of a block strategy, a castle strategy, and apulse strategy.
 16. The optical drive according to claim 9, wherein thesecond write strategy only depends on the recording of the pre-definedpattern according to the first write strategy.
 17. A method to optimizeoptical recording, comprising: recording a pre-defined pattern on anoptical medium according to a first write strategy; measuring edgetimings corresponding to the pre-defined pattern recorded on the opticalmedium; determining a second write strategy including at least timingmodifications to the first write strategy, the timing modificationsbeing based on the measured edge timings, edge timing targets fordesired edge timings and edge timing sensitivities to the timingmodifications; and recording user data on the optical medium accordingto the second write strategy, wherein the edge timing sensitivities aredefined by degrees of a timing change of an edge caused by a transitionfrom a pair of space and mark of the pre-defined pattern to another pairof space and mark of the pre-defined pattern.